Illness Throws United States a Curveball Ahead of World Championships
Members of the team representing the U.S. at the upcoming World Aquatics Championships have been dealing with significant gastrointestinal illness in recent days, sources have confirmed to Swimming World. A majority of the 47 swimmers on the roster have been affected to at least some extent.
Some swimmers were delayed in traveling to Singapore, remaining for an extended period at the team’s pre-meet camp in Phuket, Thailand. An Instagram video posted by USA Swimming suggests most or all of the team has now arrived.
The situation was originally described as food poisoning, but the source of the symptoms is now unclear. Swimmers who were spared from the first wave of illness have since become sick, suggesting that a virus or bacterial infection may have spread among the team.
Now, the Americans must try to overcome this setback in time for the start of the meet Sunday, with the first preliminary session scheduled for 10 a.m. local time (10 p.m. Saturday in the United States). It is likely that all swimmers will be able to compete as regularly scheduled, but matching their best times or even their performances from last month’s U.S. Nationals comes into question if they struggle to quickly return to full strength.
Sources have indicated that Torri Huske is among those who have been sick. The Olympic gold medalist in the 100 butterfly is set to be one of the busiest swimmers for the American team at this year’s meet, and her meet gets off to a busy start. Huske is scheduled to swim the 100 fly and the 400 freestyle relay on the opening day of competition, and she is expected to be one of the lynchpins for the American women’s relays.
The American team is aiming for big performances this week to return to the top of the medal podium after Australia won far more golds (13-7) at the last fully-attended edition of the World Championships in 2023. The U.S. did win 38 total medals at that meet but fell to a somewhat-disappointing total of 28 at last year’s Paris Olympics, with just eight gold. For this year’s meet, the U.S. women are expected have medal favorites in nearly every individual event while the men are seeking to develop new stars in the wake of their Paris struggles and high-profile absences from this year’s team.
